Falmouth University

The 3rd Student Challenge took place at the Falmouth University in Cornwall. Falmouth is a city based in the south of the UK in Cornwall.

At the Falmouth University Sustainable Product Design department students are challenged to consider how design can create positive environmental, ethical and economic change.

They learn to harness their creative skills and innovation through cutting-edge design methods and digital prototyping while working with real clients, in this case Forbo Flooring, on live briefs to gain confidence in professional practice.

Ed Mason

Ed Mason designed a customizable workspace for young professionals who live and work in restricting spaces using Forbo Furniture linoleum's unique characteristics to enhance the users experience.

Stylish and affordable
The aim was to create a desk that act as both a clean workspace (for computer and written work) and a messy workspace (such as: model making and painting). With his concept Ed offers a contemporary versatile workspace that is functional, stylish and affordable and can be quickly adapted for the task at hand.

Materials
The desk itself is made from Steel, Birch faced plywood and Forbo linoleum. Archie has a simple design allowing work to be carried out both sitting and standing.

Versatile
Both the backboard and desk end slotting systems allow a number of creative packs to be added to create an ideal working environment. The under tray provides storage place for slim line objects such as laptops and paperwork. The tray also acts as a protective surface that can be placed on the desk when undertaking creative tasks.

Brett Luffman

Space saving
Brett Luffman used Furniture linoleum to create a space saving-entrance-shelving system product for first time homeowners.

Strong
The system can hold keys as well as heavy jackets and bags and all the other essential items.

100% linoleum
His design is entirely made out of Furniture linoleum. By layering the linoleum material he created a self-supporting system. For the desired organic shape of his design he tested the bending curve of the linoleum to its extremes.

Jack Payne-Johns

Interactive learning aid
For use at primary schools Jack Payne-Johns designed an interactive learning aid using Forbo Furniture linoleum for it’s hygienic and tactile properties. Crossing multiple subject areas to aid in learning through tactile and visual resources.

Laser cutting
With laser cutting techniques he created a series of puzzle pieces with colorful inlaid letters and digits.

Existing storage system
For the measurements of the learning aid Jack used an existing school storage system as reference

Sustainable solution
A solid paper composite was selected as carrier for the Furniture linoleum thus making a sustainable responsible product.

George Pitt

Small comforts
Nowadays NHS Patient care waiting rooms are often overcrowded with long waiting times that make Patients feel anxious and even sometimes will cause panic attacks.

Offering privacy
For these people George Pitt designed a seating device with a modular partition that easily can be removed depending on the actual needs. These partitions between each seat give the patients the idea of privacy without completely separating themselves off.

Jordan Sheers

Adjustable table with integrated paper dispenser
Jordan Sheers made a desk that adjusts pneumatically in height. To integrate an A1 paper roll dispenser he uses the flexibility of Furniture linoleum to create a free flow shape that carries the role. Paper can be pulled from the dispenser when needed.

With the laser engraving technique Josh make a grid of 1000mm x 500mm in the Furniture Linoleum. By using masking tape the linoleum is protected from burn marks when laser engraved.

Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti

NABA, Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti, is an internationally renowned art and design academy located at the center of Milan’s world-famous design scene. Founded in 1980, NABA is the largest private art academy in Italy. It offers bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in Italian and in English

Ksenia Lukyanonva

PLAYSTATIONERY
A collection of small useful/useless tabletop accessories. It includes an A4 size box with a cover, which can be used as mouse-pad.

Cap pad mats for a big coffee break, a pencil box and small cases which also can function as a business card holder.

The collection was created to showcase the potential of linoleum with its endless possibilities of colours combinations.

Claudia Renate Mantik, Medhavi Tyagi, Zeynep Gökcek

Illuminari
An interactive table lamp designed for a playful and adjustable work environment. Linoleum being eco-friendly, heat resistant and having multiple colours makes it an ideal material to be used for the surface of this lamp concept.

For this design the Linoleum was applied, two sided, on plywood panels. Then a CNC machine was used to cut the circular shapes. The 15 elements can be personalized in any combination according to the preference of the user.

Stefano Sabatè

Tacos
Designed by Stefano Sabatè
A magazine rack minimally designed to take advantage of Furniture linoleum’s potential: fair, flexibility and thin sheets available in a wide range of colours that look elegant and sophisticated. The design consists of two elements, a thin metal clip that acts as a load-bearing structure that blocks the disk (two linoleum sheets previously glued together).

Dorico Moderno
A set of vases, which changes depending on how they are flipped over or stacked. The smallest of the series can be used as a paperweight, the 2nd as a penholder, the third as a vase for flowers. The two-dimensional material is transformed into three-dimensional objects: first by gluing and then by lathing solid blocks of bulletin linoleum. Compositions are endless...

Valeria Foti, Francesca Cardano and Alessia Bernardo

Leubra
The design for Leubra is based on the flexibility and malleability of the linoleum. By weaving the Furniture linoleum in a semi open pattern the partition panel provides the user a glimpse of the work environment that surround him.

The front façade is made out of pin-board linoleum and can be used as an interactive board to pin memos or other personal documents on. A versatile foldable object that easily can be moved around.

Yu-xiu Zhang

Flessi Fiori
A decorative flower design to be used stationary containers for on an office desk.

Each container is made out of one flat piece of linoleum and transformed into a 3D shape by using the flexibility of the material.

Vanya & Aaneri

ROLL.ETTE
The concept of ROLL.ETTE is to create a product, which is modular and flexible.
Roll.ette is a storage box for tabletop stationary used in an office environment.

The box is designed with a flexible opening and closing mechanism based on the bending properties of linoleum. The concept can be used for various office storage items.

Huang Yi Nuo and Cheng Shi Yu

Moonlight
By gluing, cutting and sculpturing linoleum hand-made stationery was created. Designed for the office use ‘Moonlight’ creates an environment especially for meditation and relaxation.

Though each object looks like one solid piece it can be opened and used as storage box for your secrets or bad mood.

Alessandra Spiccia

Soft-linoleum
For this modern translation of the Japanese Tatami Alessandra sealed two sheets of Furniture linoleum together with a foam layer in between. Thus creating a resilent soft surface. The project focuses on the creation of soft modules that could cover different volumes, floors and walls to create more comfortable environments.

With a system of panels of different thicknesses the designs offers the possibility to create a landscape where people will be able to relax. To take off their shoes and experience the softness of the linoleum. ' Soft-linoleum' aims to improve relaxing areas in the working environment.

Evangelos Stylianos Theofilas

Linoleum rucksack
Evangelos Stylianos Theofilas created a fashionable laptop rucksack by elegantly combining two natural materials: linoleum and felt. In this project he approached the Furniture linoleum as a sustainable alternative for leather.

A beautiful detail is the perforated pattern that he added in the linoleum. An elastic rope was used to ‘stitch’ it all together thus creating an entirely new perspective on the identity of linoleum.

Giacomo Conti and Aniello Greco

Space divider-desk
With their concept for a modular, foldable, lightweight space divider-desk Giacomo Conti and Aniello Greco responded in a smart way to the current need for flexible office environments.

By incorporating a ‘pop-up’ desk in the divider and by designing these panels as expandable modules it offers interesting new solutions. As core honeycomb cardboard material was used which was upholstered on both sides with linoleum.

Namık Yiğit Ildaş

Playful speaker
Namık Yiğit Ildaş designed and built a speaker for in a meeting room. To be placed centrally on the table when having a telephone conference. A circular wooden frame was upholstered with bulletin board on the sides.

For the top he designed a removable lit made out of furniture linoleum and engraved with a pattern. A nice playful detail is of this design is that the top can be easily replaced by another color and pattern.

Tommaso Lago, Silvia Fiorini and Barbara Li Rosi

Magnetic coasters
In this concept linoleum was used to make magnetic coasters for the servings in the office of drinks or food. By adding magnetic paper on the back of the linoleum the coasters can be used on a metal tray. The top of the Furniture linoleum is decorated with an embossing in various patterns.

Rawan Nour Chamoun

Rawan Nour Chamoun used the Furniture linoleum in its most common application: as table top.

In her concept she combined pattern with functionality. She designed an integrated loose lay pattern of tools used in the creative process.

Her lay-out of her table top shows the different scenarios of using a furniture table top, referring to the properties of linoleum and to the various working scenarios (as sketchpad, as meeting place, as coffee table…)

HDK Academy of Design and Crafts

After the successful collaboration with de Willem de Kooning Academy in 2015 Forbo Flooring decided to initiate a follow up project.

For the 2nd edition of our Student Challenge we approached the Wood Oriented Furniture Design HDK – Academy of Design and Crafts at Steneby located in Dals Långed in Sweden, see their website

Gathering

In this project students worked with the concept of "Gathering". A multi-faceted concept exploring two meanings of the term: "Gathering" as a union of people and "Gathering" as collecting materials, joints and materials meetings. This has come together also in a website

In the center of the project stood the table as a meeting place and venue for different activities taking place around it. Each student was given the task to identify, select and explore an activity that occurs around a table and to design one or many objects that dealt with this activity in any way.

Kombucha

Alice Huldtin designed a beautiful range of products around the famous Russian Kombucha elixer. This “Immortal Health Elixir” has been around for more than 2,000 years and has a rich anecdotal history of health benefits. Made from sweetened tea that’s been fermented by a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast.

In her design Alice uses the desktop colours 4183 Pistachio and 4185 Powder which she combines in a very elegant way with other refined natural materials. The setting of these skillfully crafted products associates with the traditional Japanese tea ceremonies.

Crokinole

The earliest known Crokinole board was made end of the 19th century in Canada. This ‘family’ game is like a shuffleboard in round where players take turn flicking disks on a board.

Anke Dold designed a multi functional board. When not playing the game the backside of the board can be used as an announcement board, the black desktop, 4023 nero, functions as a blackboard. Together with the board a lamp was designed to create a cozy intimate atmosphere.

Fire (escape) - reconnect with craft

Joe Clark had a hands-on approach and experimented extensively with both Furniture Linoleum and Bulletin board. Very skillfully he crafted a range of beautiful objects in which the versatility of the material can be experienced.

For his project Fire (Escape) he laminated Furniture linoleum onto veneer to provide a curvaceous yet strong surface. The starting point for a series of wonderfully made organic shaped containers.

In his skillfully crafted prototypes he underlines the importance to reconnect with practical skills in order to counterbalance human dependence on modern technology.

'Kuvert' - table artifacts

Johan Andersson created table artifacts; abstract shapes inspired on and referring to cutlery.
He researched how the table setting and cutlery affect the social meeting around the dinner table.

As a result he created a set of abstract cutlery that opens up for new experiences around the dinner table. Beautiful and intriguing objects to be used as conversation pieces. To feed the dialogue during meals and to challenge existing table conventions.

Also see his video Student video Andersson

'Interface' - a giant postcard

Inspired by the need for a physical interface in a café like setting Lisha Li designed a tray, which can be used to carry a refreshment but also to write a message on or to make notes. After use the tray can be hung on the wall presenting a personal text. With her design Lisha Invites people to step out of their digital environment into the real world and make contact.

The furniture linoleum surface has a spray-brushed area to separate the writing zone from the food and beverages. A laser cut holder for the oil crayon is incorporated into the surface.

'Kuttingen' - a flexible vessel

To make life easier Sofia Nilsson thought up a transport vessel to be used to carry young plants from one owner to the other. The container consists out of two layers of furniture linoleum; by making incisions in the furniture linoleum it becomes a flexible and foldable material. To be used for either transport or as a display or even as a mobile pop-up separation wall for in the office to create your own atmosphere.

See her video Student video Sofia Nilsson

'Illumination' - the poetry about properties

Robert Curran made some beautiful poetic and refined objects. By treating the materials in a special way he was able to push the boundaries of the material properties of the furniture linoleum. Objects seeming to belong in a Wunderkammer.

'Mokita'- the elephant in the room

How to make a group discussion more enjoyable, how to deal with the lingering 'elephant in the room', to talk about difficult subjects and overcome our fears of conflict.

Mariska Lamiaud created a ‘talking stick’ in the shape of an abstracted elephant head which can be held when wanting to tackle the elephant in the room. With her concept she makes the problem tangible, something we can grasp, talk about and pass on. An object that creates space for everyone to speak their opinion.

Mister Potato head

Tung-yun Wang created a postmodern mister potato head like cupboard for children with magnetic elements which can be repositioned. Thus changing the expression of the face.

'Steam Modules' - Fika x Tachinomi x Bulletin Board

How to improve the efficiency of a meeting was the question student Yang Yong Kang tried to tackle. What is needed to create the ultimate environment for information exchange. His conclusion is that providing space for a dynamic break with a constant flow was the key. Yang Yong Kang designed a modular station by mixing the concept of the Swedish Fika, coffee-break ritual with the Japanese Tachinomi, standing bar, and the Dutch Bulletin (pin) board. The result is a layered modular station with a organic fluid shape.

See his video Student video Yang Yong Kang

Exposition Dutch Design Week

All students worked in groups to discover the opportunities of the Pinboard and Furniture Linoleum product and see what options they could find to apply it. Half way we already saw some nice studies which are very promising for the final result.

The results where exposed during the Dutch Design week from October 17th up to including 25th 2015.